The World Health Organization (WHO) is dispatching more than one million polio vaccines to Gaza in response to the detection of the virus in sewage samples. The vaccination campaign, set to begin in the coming weeks, aims to protect children from the disease.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasized the urgency of the situation in an opinion piece for The Guardian. “While no cases of polio have been recorded yet, immediate action is crucial to prevent an outbreak among the thousands of unprotected children,” he wrote.
Children under five, particularly those under two, are most vulnerable, especially since regular vaccination efforts have been disrupted by over nine months of conflict. Polio, a highly infectious virus transmitted mainly through fecal-oral routes, can lead to paralysis and remains a significant global health concern despite a 99% decrease in cases since 1988 due to widespread vaccination.
In addition to the WHO’s efforts, Israel’s military announced it will begin offering the polio vaccine to soldiers in the Gaza Strip following the virus’s detection in local samples.
The United Nations also reported a surge in cases of Hepatitis A, dysentery, and gastroenteritis in Gaza, exacerbated by deteriorating sanitary conditions with sewage contaminating streets near displaced persons camps.
